Riviere de Galets Surf Forecast and Surf Report

Alright, let’s get into it. We’re looking at Riviere de Galets here, and if you’re hoping for clean perfection, this stretch isn't giving it up easy. The water’s sitting at a touch warmer than normal for this time of year, about 76°, which is a little gift, but the surf itself is going to be a fight against the wind for most of the run.

The opening days are pretty messy. Friday afternoon kicks off with a 7ft east swell, but that cross-shore breeze is chopping things up. It’s not going to be pretty. We carry that same theme right through the weekend. Saturday morning drops a bit to 6ft, but the wind is still ruining the surface. Saturday afternoon and all of Sunday, it stays around that 6-6ft mark, but the cross-onshore wind is just making it lumpy. There’s some long-period energy in there over the weekend, with 15-18 second intervals from the SSW, but it’s not doing us any favors with this wind. This is a spot where that long-period groundswell can line up nicely on the reef and point, but not with this chop on top. You’d be paddling for your life and getting nothing back.

Monday the 14th is more of the same, even a little worse. We’ve got 6ft and then dropping to 6ft, but the winds go onshore and it’s just poor. The energy is still moderate, but the quality is gone. Tuesday the 15th is a write-off too. The wind picks up to a fresh breeze, and it’s lumpy and cross-onshore. There’s a decent amount of energy in the water, but it’s unsurfable for a paddle.

Now, here’s where things get interesting. Wednesday the 16th. The swell builds. We’ve got a SSW groundswell, and the period is still pushing 15-16 seconds. The combined energy jumps way up to over 5200 – that’s strong, powerful stuff. By Wednesday afternoon, the swell is up to a solid 10ft. This is big, and it’s blowing hard from the ESE. This is when the setup starts to look more interesting for a kiteboarder than a surfer. That cross wind on a 10ft reef break? It’s going to be a washing machine. This is expert-only, and even then, it’s going to be a battle. Thursday isn't much better. The swell drops to 8ft, but the wind stays up, and the period drops right off to 9 seconds. That’s a big drop, and it’s going to turn it into a mess.

The following week, from Friday the 18th through to the end of the window, the energy settles down, but so does the quality. The swell drops back to that 3ft to 6ft range, but that east wind stays cross the whole time. There's a little blip on Wednesday the 23rd where the wind turns cross-offshore in the morning and it cleans up. The swell is 6ft at 16 seconds from the SW, and the energy is strong. That morning looks like the most surfable window of the whole run, but it’s still a marginal call. After that, it fades out again, small and wind-affected.

Honestly, the standout for the whole two weeks, if you have to pick one, is that Wednesday the 23rd morning. It’s the only time we get a clean look at the swell. The rest of it is a battle against the elements.

Rusty.

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